Main Street director adjusts to small town
By SUSAN MARSHALL
News Editor
One of the first pieces of advice Kristen Hooper got after settling in as Peabody Main Street director came from Jeff Benbrook, Peabody city administrator and a bit of a newcomer himself.
"One thing you want to remember around here," he told her, "is that half the town is related, maybe even more than half. You have to be real careful what you say."
Basic small town advice from one former big-city resident to another. Hooper is a life-long resident of Wichita and has just come to Peabody from the campus of a good-sized university. Sorting out the Gaineses, Bakers, Unruhs, and Mellotts and all their shirttail kin will be a mental exercise that is completely new.
"I have to confess, I wasn't sure how I would adjust to a small town," she said. "But so far I am really enjoying the people I've met.
"Everyone has been very welcoming. They all seem to want me to feel like I am part of the community. I have felt very welcome, even by people who may not think Main Street is important to Peabody," she added.
Hooper was hired by Peabody Main Street to replace Joanna Brazil, who moved to Winfield when her husband Dave accepted a position with Cowley County. Hooper is a May graduate of Pittsburg State University and has been on the job in Peabody since Memorial Day weekend.
With a degree in communications (emphasis on public relations) and a minor in marketing, she strikes Peabody Main Street board members as a good addition to their program.
"She is enthusiastic and very bright," said President Mary Avery. "I think we are lucky to have been able to hire her."
At PSU Hooper was involved in campus activities related to her major and was the first student recruited by Pittsburg Chamber of Commerce as a student intern for a pilot program to involve PSU students in chamber activities.
Hooper was on the job in Peabody only a few days when she went to the Main Street National Town Meeting in New Orleans. She was immersed almost immediately in workshops and lectures about the four point approach and historic preservation. Each Main Street city is annually required to send its director or a representative to the National Town Meeting.
Hooper said it was a good experience.
"I heard some great speakers," she said. "It was sort of baptism by fire, but I did learn a great deal."
"She really did hit the ground running," said Avery. "It was a lot to absorb in a short time, but valuable, and we're glad she was able to be there and soak it up."
Shortly after returning to Peabody she attended a quarterly training session in Topeka put on by the Kansas Main Street staff. While she knows there is still plenty to learn, she feels she has a good grasp of the basics.
"I'm anxious to apply what I have learned. I hope to be able to enhance the Main Street program and contribute to the community," she said. "There are some good traditions in place. Promoting Peabody will be a fun job to do."
As she learns the ins and outs of working and living in a small town, Hooper said it is not so different than finding herself on the PSU campus after growing up in Wichita.
"I thought Pitt State and Pittsburg were pretty small at first. It was culture shock," she said. "But I learned to enjoy the advantages.
"I intend to enjoy everything that Peabody has to offer as well. I'm glad to be here."
